The Membrane Empire
by Loopy Lupa
Summary: In the future, Dib has become the head of the Membrane Empire, and things on Earth have gone horribly wrong.


One of Danielle Koenig's finest episodes of Invader ZIM (in my opinion) was "Mopiness of Doom", one of the season two eps that never made it into animation. I've read the episode several times and even tried to draw it out myself once (even though I am woefully unable to draw in Jhonen Vasquez's style).  
  
During one of my readings, I began to wonder exactly what the future had in mind for Zim, Dib, and co. Curiosity turned into ideas and one of my favorites ideas was of Dib having taken over his father's scientific empire, but hating his life. The episode made the idea fit in nicely, and it developed into this.  
  
The fic was put off a long time, though, as I was caught up in doing other things and put all of my writing projects on hold. Recieving my very treasured copy of Vol. 1 on DVD inspired me to become active again in the IZ fan community and this seemed the perfect project with which to make my reentrance. Read and, hopefully, enjoy!

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**The Membrane Empire**  
_An Invader Zim Fanfic by Loopy Lupa_  


  
Prologue  


  
  
**_Author's Note:_** This prologue was inspired when I read Alan Lightman's book Einstein's Dreams.  
  
Fate and destiny are very odd things. They are completely inexplicable, nearly unchangable, and, when it comes to the hand of man, is normally untouchable. Technology allows the changing of a being's past to play with the outcomes of the future, but there is one thing that can still never be changed: the being's ultimate fate. Only one thing can change that:  
  
And that one thing is fate. Yes, while the general course of a human's life is set into the code of the Earth at their birth, fate likes to play tricks and see what would happen to the individual if their destinies were suddenly changed. That actually happens quite often, and while the changes often seem for the better, they quite often lead to failures in the human race.  
  
As these changes always affect not only the individual, but the entire planet, the individual to whom the change occurred is always responsible for it and must find a way to reset things to the way they should have been. Even if it means sacrificing a small, third-world country that no one knew existed in the first place to unjustly become a millionaire, the individual must do whatever it takes to reset the timeline. This is because the feeling that the Earth will die out early thanks to the change is very strong in them, and they can't deny it because it's very true. So, they always will choose their destined life of poverty over the more favourable life of riches.  
  
Once the timeline is fixed, no one remembers what has happened, what has gone wrong. Sure, the individual will have a very vague memory that is almost as intangible as a long-faded dream of what happened to them, but they never realize exactly what it was. So, this happens so often and is fixed so often that there are millions of people who have adventures that are later only the remnants of a very odd dream. It's just the ebb and flow of Earth.  
  
Once, however, there was a situation such as that described above where things almost didn't get fixed. The change, which should have been caught shortly after it happened, went unnoticed and unchecked for years during which Earth and the fates of other planets in the Universe were rewritten and went as what should have happened in the real time.  
  
It all started during what should have been a short bout of "real" science studying for an Earth child with an oddly large head called Dib. While frusterated with his usual paranormal sciences, he took time off to work with his dad in the normal sciences of the world. Since a memory of all that happened when he never returned to the paranormal studies he was destined to make a career in is kept by Dib and a few others on Earth, it is very easy to pinpoint the exact moment where fate went wrong.  
  
Only minutes before he was to be in the Irken Invader Zim's home base reinstating his old vow to expose the alien, Dib's father, the world-famous Professor Membrane, caught a mistake in his son's work and took it as evidence that there was a problem with his son.  
  
He kneeled down by his son and placed a strong hand on his shoulder. "This is obviously a cry for help! What is it, son? You can tell me."  
  
Dib, who had no idea how to tell his dad what he was feeling, started out with the usual stammer of a child who is frightened of disappointing their parents. "I'm fine, I jus--"  
  
"C'mon now, son! I can tell you're not happy." Membrane interrupted, not at all fooled by the lie. And why should he have been, it was only obvious by the frown on his son's mouth and the boredom in his eyes that something was wrong. "If something's troubling you, just do whatever it takes to fix the problem. It's the scientific way!"  
  
Here Dib was supposed to finally get the courage to confess to his father that real science bored him and that he'd much rather return to his usual paranormal science. Fate played him wrong, though, and forced him into a different answer because of the slight happiness that came from working with his father.  
  
True, the white labcoat he now wore was nowhere near as favorable as his usual black trenchcoat. Very true, the allure of paranormal science, where things weren't always 11=2 was much more interesting than the strict rules of real science. But Dib didn't want to disappoint his father, and for the sake of what he believed would be his future happiness, he made up a lie.  
  
"Oh, it's nothing, really. I've just been working so hard lately, staying up late and all, that I'm in need of a rest. Perhaps I'll just take the rest of the day off. You know, go out and maybe get some ice cream."  
  
Membrane rubbed a gloved finger against his chin. "Yes, I suppose when one is new to the work hours it takes some time to adjust. Very well, son, you may go out and have some ice cream. In fact, why don't I go with you. We'll make it a father and son outing to celebrate your entrance to real science."  
  
And so the two went to the park and spent the rest of the day doing father and son activities that no one would have ever expected of them. The bonding, which Dib knew would never have come while he was in the paranormal field, only encouraged him to continue on his current track.  
  
Meanwhile, across town in a neighborhood that Dib wouldn't set foot in for years, yet should have gone to that very day, the timeline of Earth was already being altered. The alien named Zim was just sitting around watching television while he should have been trying to take over the Earth. With the little Earth-boy Dib no longer following him constantly and trying to expose him at every turn, the Irken had lost his will to carry out the mission given to him by his Almighty Tallest.  
  
Today was the day that this pudgy, lazy, white tanktop wearing alien should have been inspired again. Dib, with his triumphant return to the paranormal, should have been in his lab at the moment, wearing his black trenchcoat again and chasing him around. Had things gone right, they would have exchanged comment after comment, each stupider and stupider, until night fell. It wouldn't have mattered to them that their main purpose wasn't carried out, they'd only be having fun putting their lives back to what they should be.  
  
But Dib never showed up, and the insults that should have been exchanged followed each other around in the alien's brain.

_"I'm gonna destroy you now!"  
  
"Yeahhh! You just try!"  
  
"I'm going to liquefy your organs!"  
  
"HAH! I'd like to see that!"  
  
"You're as smelly as I remember."  
  
"You're green and ugly."  
  
"You're a human stink-beast."  
  
"You're from outerspace!"  
  
"What do you call that, a face? You're a smelly human pig!"  
  
"And you're dummy dumbs!"  
  
"Stink-beast! You're as stupid as ever!"  
  
"You're stupider than I am!"  
  
"You smelly."  
  
"You're stinkies."  
  
"You're pig dookies."  
  
"You're dooky pies!"  
  
"Am not!"  
  
"Are too!"  
  
"Dooky!"  
  
"Dooky-do!"  
  
"Dooky back atchoo!"  
  
"Double dooks!"  
  
"Smelly human stink-beast!"_

  
  
It was like a faint memory. Not really there even though it should have been. Zim tore his eyes away from the flashing computer screen and stared instead at the ceiling, red eyes halfway closed. It would be obvious to anyone that this little Irken had no more intents on taking out the human race. Without a mortal enemy, he no longer wished to go out into the world.  
  
Only a week later, he left Earth with the intent never to return.  
  



End file.
